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CHAMBER AWARDS: Business leaders honored for commitment to community, sustainability
The Putnam County Chamber of Commerce honored three local businesses and their leaders Saturday evening for contributions to the community’s well-being.
Apart from its Citizen of the Year and Amazing Dedication awards, the Chamber also put a spotlight on a new business’s growth and success, as well as the efforts of a large-scale business. An individual business director was also named.
This year’s Rookie Business of the Year award was meaningful on different fronts. While it recognizes a business with 15 employees or less and has been active for two years or less, it is predicated on exceeding expectations for growth.
Those expectations apply all the same when it comes to community involvement and entrepreneurship. And so it was cheers all around when After Glow Aesthetics and owner Kayla Brennan were announced for the award.
After Glow Aesthetics, a spa that specializes in intravenous hydration therapy, began as a single room with two IV chairs. It has grown since to have three rooms at 100 Fifth St. in Greencastle, as well as a mobile office.
“What sets this business apart is not just its success, but also the unwavering commitment to our community,” Chamber board member Brittany Overshiner said. “When you walk through the doors of this business, you are no longer a stranger. You are her friend.”
Overshiner emphasized that Brennen has been “a beacon of generosity” through supporting youth activities, cancer events and more.
The award was just as special to incoming Chamber President Brooke Trissel, as she and Brennen are friends who have lost close family members to complications of lung cancer. As such, both have collaborated on relatable initiatives.
“I was burned out as a nurse, I didn’t wanna do it anymore,” Brennan said of undertaking this dream of hers in 2017 and into Covid. “I was working two jobs literally taking the life out of me, and I was like, ‘There has to be something different. We have to have a different way to treat people.’”
Having a strong work ethic from her father, Brennan saved up and opened After Glow Aesthetics in January 2022. None of it, she related, would have been possible without the support of her longtime partner.
“I just brought something to the community that I think that is needed, and I was scared that I was gonna fall down on my face,” Brennan said about businesses’ support in turn. “So thank you, thank you so much.”
Trissel then presented the Chamber’s Business Leader of the Year award for large companies that have supported initiatives in the community. With this year’s award going to Crown Equipment Corp., Trissel noted that it has set an exceptional standard for leadership, innovation and engagement.
“Over the past year, they’ve (Crown) been steadfast supporters, going the extra mile to uplift small businesses and contribute to the well-being of nonprofits,” Trissel said.
Trissel also touched on Crown taking its corporate responsibility seriously to cultivate a culture that supports its employees as much as the community. Part of this has been making sustainability a top priority.
“In an era when environmental consciousness is paramount, they have taken significant steps to reduce their environmental footprint, setting an inspiring example for other businesses to follow,” Trissel said.
As to presenting the Chamber’s Director of the Year, outgoing Chamber President Beau Battin related that selecting this year’s winner was effectively a debate. This, he suggested, underscores the value and meaning behind it.”
“The value that a good director brings to a board, brings to the executive community and what it brings to an executive director, it’s phenomenal,” said Battin, who himself won the award more than a decade ago. “There were several very deserving people.”
Though not there in person but able to get the reaction via video call, Vincent Aguirre accepted the award on behalf of Athletico Physical Therapy’s Matt Owens.
“I don’t wanna brag on Matt, because he wouldn’t brag on himself if he was here,” Aguirre said of Owen as a father of four, a band member and a Chamber board member, apart from being a husband and friend. “Really, the guy’s incredible.”